Art for the People, a public art project in Decatur, unveiled its latest work this month.
Artist Ellex Swavoni was joined by residents Sept. 12 for the public unveiling ceremony of “What Sonia Said,” described as a fiery, heroic phoenix inspired by Sonia Sanchez’s poem “Catch the Fire.”
The sculpture is on display at the plaza at Beacon Municipal Center at 420 W. Trinity Place between the Ebster Recreation Center and the Decatur Police Department.
Art for the People is an initiative “that challenges structural racism and the enshrinement of oppression and genocide,” according to the city’s Visit Decatur website. “Art for the People changes the narrative by reflecting the voices of people of color, advocating for social justice and equity, and lifting up themes of racial reckoning, resistance, survival, healing, affirmation and radical imagination.”
Art for the People is a project of the Beacon Hill Black Alliance for Human Rights in partnership with the Decatur Arts Alliance and Decatur Makers. The Beacon Hill group was among those who worked to remove the Confederate monument on the Decatur Square.